The mysteries of Madan Tamang’s murder

Whenever I hear of a murder I am reminded of my visit to Bastar District of Chhattisgarh (then Madhya Pradesh) in the winter of 1994. It was a study group sponsored by the country’s prestigious National Defence College in New Delhi. The Divisional Commissioner and Inspector General of Police who joined us for dinner told in an informal chat that the rural area of Bastar comprising overwhelmingly of tribal population cut off from what we usually call ‘the civilized world’ was almost free from crime. It pleasantly surprised us. What they told next was even more pleasantly surprising. The IG Police stated that if ever there were a case of murder the person having committed it would walk straight to the nearest police outpost carrying the dead body of the victim, confess his crime and willingly submit himself to the course of law. In most cases the self confessed murderer would also candidly tell the police the reasons why he had to take such a drastic step. ‘No murder therefore is a mystery here’, declared the IG.

Things are different in the civilized world where all murders are mysterious because civilization arms criminals with a mind sharp enough to save their skin without bothering for their conscience. The sharp mind of a civilized person more often than not makes him indifferent to the question of morality and he finds nothing wrong in spinning fictional alibis that might logically distance him from his deeds. This obviously adds to the element of mystery and makes the task of the police and Magistracy far more difficult.

Darjeeling as we all know is a civilized place and crimes committed in the District though less than elsewhere in the State, nevertheless have their share of mystery. The brutal assassination of Madan Tamang more than five years back is no exception. The case is peculiar as the state CID whose job was to unravel the mystery actually ended up adding to it.

MISSING NICOLE
Look at the arrest and escape of Nickole Tamang considered to be the prime suspect of the brutal killing. While the crime took place on 21 May 2010 this ‘prime suspect’ was arrested over three months later on 15 August 2010. As his arrest reportedly took place on the eve of the tripartite talks scheduled between the GJMM and the governments of India and west Bengal to consider the important question of inclusion of Siliguri and Dooars in the proposed Gorkhaland and the interim set up under consideration at that juncture. Some press reports at that time suggested that it could be some sort of ‘pressure tactic’ to influence the outcome of the talks. While such conjecture could be plain wishful thinking, it is Nickole’s escape, or as some reputed pressmen have termed ‘disappearance’ from the CID custody on 21 August that is the real mystery.

Soon after the infamous escape or disappearance Devendra Pratap Singh the then SP of Darjeeling had assured the press that all police stations in Darjeeling District had been alerted ‘so that Nickole doesn’t escape to Nepal’. Notwithstanding the SP’s assurance the CBI in July 2011 told Calcutta High Court that Nickole was seen crossing over to Nepal at about 7.00 a.m. on 11 March 2011 and was reportedly living there. A red corner notice was also reportedly got issued against Nickole from the Interpol. The information about Nickole living in Nepal, the CBI claimed was based on some phone intercepts of some of Nickole’s relatives.

There are a series of mysteries here. Why Nickole couldn’t be arrested sooner than mid-August when he was the prime suspect in a crime committed nearly three months ago in May? How could he escape from the well-guarded custody of the state CID? How come when the state police knew that he might cross over to Nepal as is clear from the statement of the then SP Nickole escaped to, nowhere but to Nepal, even when all police stations of the district along Indo-Nepal border were put on alert exclusively to stop him from crossing over? If, as the CBI has told the High Court in precise terms that he was seen crossing over to Nepal at 7.00 a.m. on 11 March 2011, why no action has been taken against the I/C of the police station (or outpost) under whom the spot from where he crossed into Nepal fell? Most importantly why no action has been taken against the CID officer I/C of Nickole’s custody for his escape?

There are reports that the CBI has approached the state government to sanction prosecution of the concerned CID officer but the sanction hasn’t so far been given. The reasons for withholding the sanction also aren’t forthcoming from any quarter. It is also not clear why the CBI hasn’t complained to the trial court about the state government’s refusal or reluctance to grant the requisite sanction and why isn’t the agency simply including his name in the charge sheet for destruction of evidence leaving it to the court to deal suitably with he state government.

DINESH aka KAINLA
As per information available in public domain there are two prime suspects in the case; Nickole Tamang and Dinesh Subba aka Dinesh Rai. While Nickole was arrested and escaped, allowed to escape or as some believe eliminated, the other fellow Dinesh Subba/Rai alias Kainla is still at large even when the trial is all set to commence shortly. Can the mystery of the brutal murder be unraveled convincingly under the shadow of such omissions? Will the mystery not deepen further because of the claims and counter claims on Nickole’s fate in view of his inexplicable escape or disappearance with Nickole’s wife claiming that he has been probably eliminated and Mrs Bharati Tamang widow of the Late Madan Tamang having claimed earlier that the state CID deliberately allowed him to escape?

SUSPICIOUS TRANSCRIPTS
Then comes the mystery of the transcripts of the telephone conversation between the President, General Secretary and some local cadres of the GJMM before and after the gruesome murder. These were first published by Indian Express on 15 July 2010 and have been subsequently, especially after the latest charge sheet filed by the CBI against the top leadership of the GJMM published repeatedly by a number of local print as well as on line publications. While all the publications are prefaced with a caveat that they don’t vouch for the authenticity of the transcripts, in the writ petition filed by Mrs Bharati tamang in the Supreme Court (WP- CRL 159 0f 2012) the CBI had told the bench that the authenticity of the alleged transcripts was ‘yet to be established’. It was further informed that a clone of the hard disc containing the transcripts had been made available by the state intelligence bureau to the CBI and the same had been sent to the central forensic science laboratory (CFSL) for examination. Whether the CFSL has given its finding or not is as yet not in public knowledge. Besides, for examining the authenticity, the CFSL would have normally insisted for voice samples of all including Nickole Tamang and Dinesh Subba allegedly involved in the transcripts. If so whether, and if yes how, the voice samples of the two missing persons were collected and made available to the CFSL isn’t known either. These crucial aspects will be known only after the CBI provides an update to the trial court.

The above are only technical points. There is also a substantial point about these transcripts. From the intercepts made public it may be assumed that any person with a reasonable degree of prudence would have based on real time monitoring of the conversation, known at least a day before the gruesome murder that some mischief against late Madan Tmang could be afoot. It may not be wrong to assume that the state police or intelligence personnel engaged in the intercepts were monitoring the conversation on real time basis and were not without reasonable degree of prudence to initiate timely preventive action. What is incomprehensible however, is why these personnel didn’t take any timely measures to prevent the crime. Did they wish the crime allegedly indicated or spelt out in the transcript to be committed, and act only ex-post facto? If so how does one explain the approach that is prima facie dereliction of duty apart from being indefensible perversion? Could there not be something more than meets the eye in such dereliction of duty?

THE HIDDEN ENEMY
The mother of all mysteries in the case is who was late Madan Tamang’s enemy who could have gone to the extent of plotting and executing his murder. He was a suave, sophisticated person who was genuinely loved by the common masses in the region and it is beyond imagination to think of any one harboring such dreadful hatred against him. He had his strong uncompromising political views but still it is hard to comprehend that there could be some one so full of violent hatred against him. Nevertheless let us try and see if his political views might yield some clues.

Though never a big hit in terms of electoral politics Tamang was a fearless person who meant what he said and practiced what he preached. His politics was so crystal clear that it may be easily summarized in just two or three sentences. He was an uncompromising advocate of Gorkhaland and objected to any other solution including any interim set up. He criticized Subhash Ghising for practicing violence, corruption, acquiescence to the interim setup of DGHC and most of all for dropping the demand for Gorkhaland in favor of sixth schedule that he called a hoax. He also criticized GJMM for corruption and a rumored interim setup, namely, GTA.

His most scathing attacks were however reserved for Subhash Ghising as is clear from an interview he gave to Darjeeling Times as late as 7 December 2006 [Details:http://bit.ly/1GLDocQ.] Some of his notable utterances in that interview were indeed hard hitting. ‘Ghising is not a leader, he is a counter leader. He has ambitions but no ideology. He has ruined every thing in he hills; health, industry, tea, tourism everything is ruined. Schedule VI is hoax, we want nothing short of separation from Bengal. Ghising is helped by government of west Bengal because he is helping their interests’ and so on and so forth.

Madan Tamang was perhaps the only public figure in the region who was so outspoken against leaders who had become cult figures he never bothered about any retaliation that might follow. Mercifully he didn’t have to face any violent retaliation except on one occasion when GNLF supporters allegedly torched his ancestral house. Perhaps those whom he attacked were well aware of the deep respect and affection in which common man in the region held him due to his erudition and integrity.

It is therefore baffling that he should have met such a violent end in the hills for improving the lot of whose inhabitants he had devoted his whole life.

CONSPIRACY OF THE OTHER KIND?
There are therefore some theories, howsoever farfetched and improbable, still sticking to public perception that his uncompromising stand on separation from Bengal and stubborn refusal to agree to any interim measures had the potential of annoying the then state government. Could the incident have been manipulated to get rid of an uncompromising opponent and at the same time to derail the talks between the GJMM and the state government? A report in The Hindu dated 24 May 2010, states that three days after the murder the con the ground that ‘GJMM had lost popular support’ seems to suggest just that [Details: http://bit.ly/1cZ25Gw].

When one views such perception in the light of Nickole’s inexplicable disappearance from CID custody and the state government’s refusal or reluctance to permit prosecution of the officers responsible for his safe custody it simply deepens the suspicion.

FAIR TRIAL
CBI is one of the most competent investigating agencies of the country. Our judiciary too is fiercely objective and independent in its functioning. Because of the high level of professionalism of the CBI and independence of the judiciary we have reason to feel confident that the mysteries involved in this gruesome murder shall all be unraveled and truth made known.

There is however no gainsaying that the CBI as well as the trial court have a herculean task ahead to ensure that justice is not only done but also appears to have been done since this is one of those rare cases in which the mysteries are not merely attributable to the culprits alone but also to acts of omission and commission of the state CID.

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